19.December 2019

Local citations – the key to more visibility

Local citations is one of the key terms in local online marketing. But what does it mean? And what does it have to do with the success of your local business? Here are the basics and valuable tips.

What are local citations?

Local citations are digital mentions of a local business on the internet. A local citation consists, for example, of the name, telephone number or address of a local business. Local citations are mainly found in local business directories, on websites, in apps and on social media platforms.

What do local citations consist of?

The core of a local citation is the so-called NAP data: Name, address and telephone number. Depending on which format the respective website or platform allows, this can also be included in the broadest sense:

  • Other contact options such as e-mail address and fax number
  • Industry affiliation
  • Opening hours
  • Services or products offered
  • Logos, photos, videos
  • Accepted means of payment
  • Geocoordinates
  • Customer ratings and reviews
  • Average response time for inquiries
  • Links to further content and websites

What types of local citations are there?

Local citations can be divided into two groups: structured citations and non-structured citations.

Structured citations are clearly organized and therefore particularly machine-readable data records. They contain the core data of a company. Structured citations are mainly found in online business directories and directories, but also on social media platforms. Prominent examples of websites with structured citations include Yelp, the Yellow Pages and Facebook.

Non-structured citations, on the other hand, are mentions in continuous text and outside of a predefined structure. They can be found in blog articles, social media posts, wikis, etc. Non-structured citations are therefore natural mentions of a company outside the automated structure of a directory.

Why are local citations so important for my company?

Local Citations are important for local businesses for two reasons.

Firstly, citations ensure that potential customers discover your business on the relevant platforms: it is more likely that someone looking for a new hairdresser will become aware of a hairdressing salon if as many well-maintained citations as possible draw attention to this hairdresser.

Secondly, the quantity and quality of citations influence the ranking of a company on Google, Bing and other search engines. If a business or branch is mentioned particularly often and consistently, the search engines interpret the business as particularly prominent and important. This has a drastic impact on local search results in particular and determines which hairdresser, lawyer, doctor or tax consultant Google recommends in a user’s local area.

This means that the tax advisor who is consistently placed in numerous digital business directories, on websites, blogs and in social media with all the important data tends to appear higher up on Google than the competition next door who is barely mentioned or mentioned with incorrect data.

It is therefore doubly worthwhile for you to actively tackle the topic of local citations. Visitors to business directories, social media platforms, websites and blogs as well as users of local Google searches are already in the vicinity of your business. What’s more, these same interested parties are very specifically looking for a service you offer. It is important to reach these highly interested users better than the competition. By building and optimizing your citation portfolio, you signal trustworthiness and prominence to prospective customers and search engines. This will bring you a significant step closer to your goal and win customers for you.

How can local citations be established and maintained?

Establishing and regularly maintaining local citations can be very time-consuming and costly. Nevertheless, it is important to invest the time or hire someone to set up and maintain the citations. This can often give you a clear advantage, especially in the face of local competition. We are happy to support you in using local citations to your advantage. A few tips to get you started:

  • Quality over quantity: Place citations on the most relevant pages for your business. Proper citations on high-quality, suitable platforms can have a significant impact on your success. Mass placement on low-quality sites, on the other hand, is wasted effort.
  • The data of your company or your locations and branches should be placed as consistently and uniformly as possible! If details such as telephone numbers are formatted slightly differently, this will not have a major impact on your visibility. Nevertheless, the following applies: NAP data in particular – i.e. name, address and telephone numbers – should always be consistent.
  • Add as much useful information as possible to your local citations. If the mentioning website offers the opportunity to do so, add a description of your business, opening hours, photos, social media links, etc.
  • Authorize yourself as the owner. On many platforms and sites, you can authorize yourself as the owner by e-mail or telephone.

Summary

Local citations have been one of the most important and effective elements in online marketing with a local focus for some time now. With a good citation portfolio, you can significantly improve your visibility in search services and your persuasive power in digital business directories.

Local citation management is not an optional extra, but an absolute necessity. Inconsistent data can permanently impair the digital performance of your business.
Nevertheless, citations should not be built up blindly and in bulk. Instead, you should place citations on high-quality platforms, industry pages and websites.

We are happy to help you set up and maintain local citations for your company. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions on this topic or need our support.